Sailesh Chutani co-founded Mobisante to develop a mobile, affordable ultrasound system that could make the technology more accessible to a broader group of primary care providers.

Sailesh has championed mobile technologies in healthcare since 2005 and he co-authored the book, “Technology at the Margins” that takes a global view of the impact of the mobile phone on healthcare, education, micro-finance and resource management.

SW: We are looking forward to your talk Friday evening. What do you plan to discuss?

SC: I’ll focus on my journey starting Mobisante: everything that it takes to get a startup up and running and into the marketplace—from funding, product creation, distribution, sales and marketing.

SW: Why Seattle? Why did you start Mobisante here?

SC: Seattle has a deep history in the ultrasound market. The University of Washington did seminal research in developing ultrasound for clinical use. Eventually some of that technology was commercialized and became ATL (which was subsequently acquired by Phillips). Sonosite spun-off from ATL and was early-to-market with more portable devices, it was recently acquired by FujiFilm.

Seattle has incredible bench strength in terms of talent: in healthcare, academic research and technologists. The University of Washington Bothell (and main campus) has incredible talent and. We have been very happy with the interns and full-time employees that we hired from those places.

SW: What are the biggest economic drivers for Mobisante’s business?

SC: With the Affordable Care Act, both the physicians and patients have become even more sensitive to cost and quality of care. The patient often has a very high deductible and pays for many of their procedures out-of-pocket. They are now ‘doctor shopping’ for clinics and primary care physicians that offer a high-level of care, at an affordable price. It’s one of the key factors that keeps them returning to that clinic.

For the primary care provider, cost-effective ultrasound equipment in a clinic cuts costs for two reasons—first, the primary care provider can reduce the number of patients who need to go to a specialized clinic for a scan, which saves time and eliminates a traditionally expensive scan; second, it cuts time to treatment because the scan is performed in-house. And just as importantly, keeps the patient returning to that clinic.

SW: What do you hope to see resulting from the event?

SC: My hope is that potential entrepreneurs who are on the fence will make the leap, learn new skills and techniques, and help grow the eco system. There’s so much learning that happens through Seattle’s network.